


The Gala Swap

by Torched22



Category: DCU, DCU (Comics), Smallville
Genre: Confusion, M/M, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2019-11-22
Packaged: 2020-05-12 04:18:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19221433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Torched22/pseuds/Torched22
Summary: Clark runs into Lex, except this Clark isn't the Clark that Lex remembers, and visa versa.





	1. Chapter 1

Grand chandeliers hung in the great hall, gathering every glint of light and dispersing them through thousands of crystals. The music was gentle and classical, with a few jazzier tunes sprinkled in to prevent patrons from total boredom. Lex supposed that was what the alcohol was for as well.

He had already gone through the flask in his breast pocket and after two glass of champagne, would now have to rely on whatever drinks had made it to this stage of the evening. 

The entire affair had a perfunctory air. Men and women mechanically swept across the dance floor and for those not dancing, the bullshitting was at an all time high. 

Lex didn't really have an option when it came to events like this one. His foray into politics required a considerable amount of ass kissing and face showing. So rather than complain or avoid, he did his duty, talking to anyone of actual importance, and selectively fielding anyone brave enough to approach him with no real agenda.

Women huddled together like gaggles of geese and eyed him appreciatively, squawking amongst themselves about Luthor's status. Lex could feel his blood pressure rising by the second. Life as a Luthor was enough of a spotlight, but Metro Mag decided to add to Lex's torture. 

"Metropolis' Most Eligible Bachelor," the forgettable rag had boasted one week ago in bold letters that hung above his stoic face. Even though it was a gossip piece, it caught like wildfire and had the entire city erroneously thinking that they too could have a shot with the brilliant thirty-five-year-old. 

The second Lex saw the cover, he was set to go on a full blown rampage and strip the writer of their insipid little job. But his publicist, Rob reminded him that any press was good press, and that the extra attention would only help him. As the leers added up though, Lex didn't feel 'helped.' 

Because the piece came out just a week before the Metropolis Gala, roughly two thousand women had found it necessary to offer their company to him for the event. As a giant, "F you, I can handle my own shit," Lex decided to fly solo to the event. 

Maybe it wasn't the smartest move though...nearly every moderately attractive soul at the event had asked him to dance. He felt like a gazelle in a ring of lions, a slab of meat surrounded by the starving. No one felt sorry for him per se, they just wanted a piece, and fending them off took too much energy.

The internet also loved to remind the citizens of Metropolis and the world of Lex's past. He was painted as the young world-traveler who partied his way around the globe before settling back in Kansas and giving diamond earrings to his conquests. It wasn't a flattering image, and it took a lot of time and effort to convince people that Senator Luthor was far removed from his childish ways. If anything, he spun his mistakes and used them to show people that he was only human. 

Being relatable proved invaluable and most people couldn't relate to the billionaire lifestyle, but they could relate to having things in their past that they'd rather forget. 

Wine.

All Lex could find was red wine. 

He sipped from the glass slowly, watching the room around him as if he were on safari. Only the most elite were invited to the gala and the air of self-importance that clung to the men and women like perfume, was noxious. Lex wasn't into "influencers," or "trend setters," he was into world-changers. Some of those people were here as well, but he had exhausted that avenue. 

Perhaps it was time to leave. 

Turning, Lex eyed a tray with chocolate covered strawberries and decided to pop one into his mouth. The dark chocolate coating the blood red fruit paired perfectly with the burgundy in his hand. He licked any remaining chocolate bits away with his tongue and finished the glass

The party was still in full swing despite it being two hours in. The women probably wanted to get the most out of their makeup and flowing gowns as possible. The men wanted to show off their tailored suits and beaming smiles, their manicured hands resting on the impossibly slim lower backs of their dates. It was an ocean of selfies and brown nosing that left Lex somewhat nauseous. But image and politics were synonymous. 

Rob the publicist, he was the type who would excel here, Lex thought to himself as he waded through the diamond dipped crowd towards the bathroom. Rob would be in the center of the room, chatting and smiling, genuinely listening to every inane story and trivial verbal morsel fed to him. Luthor was working on his bullshitting skills, but the slowness that politics and society ambled forward with was enough to drive him insane. At his core, Lex was a scientist. He wanted immediate changes, chains of logic, and measurable results.

A man came out of the bathroom and smiled at Lex as he passed him. It was an odd, crooked smile, but Lex attributed it to alcohol and/or drugs and shrugged it off as he pushed the heavy door open.

The bathroom was as opulent as the ballroom. Marble sinks, ornate mirrors, ambient lighting, it even smelled good. Notes of jazz floated through the air and Lex briefly thought of a myriad of other things he could be doing with this time. Perhaps he'd go to a real jazz club after this. 

He went over to the urinal and began doing his business, the sound of the zipper on his jet black Armani pants echoing loudly in the room. Lex finished up and tucked himself in, flushing. He thought he was alone in the hotel-like bathroom until he heard a sigh from a stall. With a creased brow, he headed towards the sinks. Dealing with anyone else was really not something he wanted to do at the moment.

The creak of a stall door opening let him know that he wouldn't likely escape without pleasantries of some sort. 

"Lex," he heard, unsurprised at his name, but shocked by the voice. 

He looked up in the mirror and saw Clark Kent.

"God am I so glad to see you," Clark said, relief etched into his words. 

Lex finished washing his hands and the water turned off. He turned to face Clark and stood stock still, stunned as Kent embraced him. Lex never hugged anyone and never let anyone hug him, so this was unexpected to say the least. 

"Why would you be glad to see me?" Lex asked, puzzled as Clark pulled away. Much to his chagrin, he actually missed the solid warmth of the other man's chest against his as soon as contact was lost. 

"Are you kidding? It's like a shark tank out there," Clark nodded towards the door. Clark himself turned towards the sink and washed quickly. "I can't stand all these stiffs..." Kent's words came to a halt, his face blushing, "I mean...I'm...I'm glad you invited me of course. You're right about me needing some culture, and I'm definitely not going to get that at the farm."

Lex looked left, then right, stopping at Kent's face. "What are you talking about? I didn't invite you Kent. Doesn't the Daily Planet send you to these things?" 

"The Daily Planet?" Clark looked incredulous, as if such a thought was ludicrous. "Yeah right."

Lex shook his head, confusion coursed through him and it was a foreign feeling he didn't like.

"Anyway..." Clark had moved on apparently, "how do I look?" he had his arms out, wide palms upturned, showing off his suit. The question again caught Lex off guard. 

"You look..." he gulped, taking in the sight of Daily Planet reporter Clark Kent - a man who almost never, ever spoke to him, and certainly never on friendly terms. 

"Good. Amazing actually." Lex's own words surprised him, the compliment stepping foot off his own lips without permission.

"Well, without a friend like you to influence my style, I'm afraid I could have shown up to this thing in flannel."

Lex's brow creased as he imagined such a catastrophe. "That would be disastrous," Lex deadpanned, but Clark just laughed. 

"And you Lex..." the young man's green eyes swept over Lex's body like a caress. "You look...really...I mean...fantastic," the last word was spoken almost reverently. "That purple silk shirt and black tie, black suit, I..." Kent gulped, visibly reacting to how Lex looked in real time and it sent a shiver down Luthor's spine. 

Luthor stepped forward and looked Kent's face over. He looked different somehow, but he couldn't figure out why. 

Clark noticed the confused staring.

"What is going on with you Lex? You're totally off..."

"Lex?" 

"Yeah...Lex...you know? Your name?"

"You always call me 'Luthor.'"

Clark's face scrunched up. "What? No I don't. How cold and impersonal is that? Plus, you're just a Luthor in name. You're nothing like your dad, you're your own person. Wouldn't you hate being called just...'Luthor?'"

"What the hell do you know about my father?" 

"What, Lionel? I know he's a manipulative bas...er...bad guy."

Another wine red blush bloomed along Clark's cheekbones. Lex had never even seen the reporter flustered, let alone blushing. It was annoyingly endearing. 

"Kent..."

"Why do you keep calling me that Lex?" Clark sounded hurt but Lex couldn't figure out why. 

"Because we're not friends."

The words were weightless to Lex, a fact written in stone for years, nothing of import. And yet, Clark's beaming angelic face fell and shattered like a glass thrown against concrete. The man looked close to tears, his impossibly bright eyes coated in unshed salty drops. 

"Wh...since when?" Clark's voice broke on the last syllable and something inside of Lex twisted uncomfortably.

"Since...always..."

"But...but no...you said I was the first real friend you ever had Lex, don't you remember saying that?" 

Lex gulped, shook his head 'no' slowly.

The trapped tears escaped and slid down Kent's angular features. 

Seeing the other man actually cry jolted Lex like lightning. 

"You...taught me how to play pool. You helped me with physics homework and taught me philosophy. What about our movie binges? Or swimming in Crater Lake? All the times I bring you produce?"

Lex's hands were up in front of him like some sort of defense.

"If this is some sort of weird, sick joke, it isn't funny Mr. Kent."

"Mr. Kent?" Clark's eyebrows practically shot up to his hairline. Mr. Kent is my Dad. Lex, have you hit your head? Seriously?" his large hands came to Lex's biceps, a look of genuine concern written into his features as he looked Lex over. 

For hating being touched, Lex certainly didn't mind the reporter touching him. Hmmm. Curious. 

"You seriously don't believe me?" Clark's voice raised an octave. "Then ask me something only a closest friend would know. Ask. Anything." 

"I...I don't know Kent...I can't think of anything. But whatever you come up with, I'm sure I won't be shocked. There's a lot about me out there on the internet."

"The internet?" Clark shook his head to clear his thoughts and dropped his hands back to his sides. "Okay," he wrung his hands together nervously.

"What about the fact that nobody showed up to your eleventh birthday? Or that Lionel blames you for Julian's death? How about that ornate box your mom left you? Or the watch she gave you?" 

"Stop," Lex uttered, the word spoken calmly but with a sea of turbulence beneath the surface. 

He stepped incredibly close to Kent, close enough to feel the reporter's breath skate across his face. Lex searched that face for duplicity, for malace, for the glint in the eyes that belied a power grab. But he saw none of those things there. Just an open expression, plush lips speaking truths that he'd never deigned telling another soul. This couldn't be some trick. He knew that what Clark spoke of weren't things one could simply Google. The question was: how the hell did he know them?

Luthor couldn't figure out what was going on. The reporter he had known had vanished and in his place stood a slimmer, less abrasive man who apparently knew him intensely. He also didn't have the usual air of wariness that he typically carried around Lex. There was no weight, no sadness, clinging to his shoulders and there was a shine in his eyes that Luthor had never seen before. 

He wasn't sure how to proceed.


	2. Chapter 2

"I'm still worried about you Lex," the facsimile of Clark Kent said to Lex. "I should stay over tonight, at the penthouse with you, make sure you're alright."

Lex smiled, his white teeth glittering like the pearls that hung around the womens' necks in the ballroom. The thought of Clark Kent coming home with him sent a pleasurable shiver down his spine. The practically mute reporter who seethed at him during press conferences, had just invited himself to the penthouse. What were the odds?

The notion of this unanticipated guest had Lex imagining a whole host of naughty things that, if spoken aloud, would set the reporters blush a blaze.

He took a predatory step forward, appreciating the height difference as he looked up an inch or two into those sea glass eyes. "It's sweet that you're worried about me," he practically purred. The abundance of alcohol consumption throughout the night was coursing through Lex's veins and spreading warmth throughout his chest.

"Of course Lex...I worry about you a lot."

"Is that so?" he tilted his head, appreciating the fine angular jaw line in front of him.

"Yeah."

"What do you worry about?" 

Clark wasn't quite sure how to answer that question, or if he should at all. Lex seemed so different tonight, but...but Luthor relished honesty, treasured it like a poor man polishing a gold coin. Kent desperately wanted Lex's approval and affection, so he'd offer up the truth, even if the outcome may prove...disastrous. Clark knew that Lex had certain buttons, and if pressed, he could lose his temper. But even the thought of a furious Lex was appealing for some reason.

Lex watched as Clark worried his lip, the gears in his mind turning over the internal struggle. It was cute. 

"Just tell me, I won't be mad." 

'Damn,' Clark thought, 'Lex must be a mind reader.'

He nodded, took a breath and rubbed the back of his neck. He also tried not to focus on how closely Lex was standing to him. Heat radiated off of Clark, but coolness seemed to wisp around Lex. It would be so tempting to just reach out and touch that porcelain face. 

"I worry that your dad has too much influence on you."

Odd...dear old Daddy Luthor was long dead. "Go on."

"I worry that sometimes...I think...well...that you do the wrong things for the right reasons, or the right things for the wrong reasons. You're so many shades of gray Lex, I wonder if you can still see the black and white."

Lex didn't get angry as Clark had anticipated, instead, a smile graced his attentive eyes. "Anything else?" 

"Well, you do drive pretty recklessly."

A chuckle burst out of Lex's throat before he could reign it in. "Do I? How so?" 

"Oh come on Lex, nearly knocking me off a bridge in your Porsche at 60 miles an hour isn't reckless enough?" 

Luthor's brows creased incrementally, confused, but Clark didn't catch the movement.

"And..." Clark sighed, his head lowering, unsure of whether to continue. 

"And...?" 

"I worry about you being lonely Lex," it was a whispered admission that had that unfamiliar clenching return to his chest. 

"You're always surrounded by people, but they're employees or pawns in an elaborate game. You're never with anyone who really, truly knows and appreciates you - well, except for me," Clark cracked a smile. "I know that what you do is crazy important, and that you have a legacy to uphold and everything. But I want you to be happy too Lex."

Luthor was startled into silence. His every inclination was screaming that he should run away. Clark's words broke his mental exit strategy though. 

"Are you happy, Lex?"

It was a terrifying question, with terrifying prospective answers and implications. But in this moment, it wasn't hard to answer. 

"Right now I am." 

Clark smiled, the happiness radiating from him like sunshine. His warmth was infectious, as was his honesty and the fact that he could so effortlessly toss Lex off his game. 

They were inches apart, so it was inevitable. Lex reached his good hand up, his real hand, and ran his fingers along Clark's cheek. The other man's eyes fluttered shut as he turned into the touch. His skin felt like sunshine and corn silk. Lex grew bolder, carding that same hand through Clark's hair, soft as silk and chestnut brown. 

Clark swayed forward, his eyes slipping open to peer into Lex's admiring gaze. Then he blushed a beautiful pink that Lex wanted to bottle and paint a whole room with. 

"Lex is this...I mean, I think I know already, but...have you been flirting with me? Er, I mean, are you flirting with me?"

Luthor smiled. How could a grown man not realize when he was being so shamelessly flirted with? 

"Yes Clark, I am flirting with you."

"So you...uh..."

"...want to fuck you?" Lex finished his sentence, reveling in the gasp it elicited. "Desperately Clark..." he spoke onto Kent's lips now, the words tickling the flushed flesh. "I want you over and over and over again, begging for me, screaming my name." 

Clark whined. Actually whined, as if he were in pain, as if the thought of what Lex suggested had completely short circuited his brain. It was Clark who closed the distance, eagerly kissing Lex with such passion and enthusiasm that Luthor didn't doubt he could come just from this. 

He was basically a sex addict who had slept with half of Metropolis, yet no one had ever generated this feeling in him before. It was like an enjoyable electrocution, every point of contact with Clark sang, every nerve of his body was on fire. Torture bordering on euphoria.

Kent wasn't the most expert kisser, but Lex slowed him down, angled his head with his hand, and began teaching Clark how to really kiss. And what a fast learner he was...nipping at Lex's lower lip, exploring his mouth with his tongue, already fluent in the language that Lex had taught him seconds ago.

Lex broke away breathlessly, but Clark seemed to not be winded at all. 

"Let's go," Lex licked his lips and rubbed a thumb over Clark's swollen rose lips. 

"You probably could have guessed this," Clark said nervously, a hand catching Lex just before he was out the door. "But I've never...with a guy...I..."

Holy shit, Lex's brain almost turned to liquid and slipped down his spine. 

"I always wanted it to be you," Clark admitted beneath long lashes, his eyes gauging the effect of his words on Lex. 

The room seemed smaller, dizzier, Lex's heartbeat rushing loudly in his ears. 

"Since when? I mean, how long have you thought about us fucking Clark?" 

Clark took a deep breath, looking down at Lex trapped beneath he and the door out to the ballroom. "Since the day we first met - on the bridge - when I pulled you out of the water."

There it was again, that nagging pull of confusion on Lex's brain. It was as if his mind was working at 120% trying to recall something, reaching through the haze of alcohol and lust to touch on something vital.

"When I gave you the kiss of life," Clark whispered. "That was my first kiss Lex."

In what felt like a violent fast forward, or perhaps rewind, Lex recalled wet and darkness. A lack of air. Then an abundance of it. The same green eyes he stared at now, only then they were filled with concern, bright beneath a mop of wet, curling hair. The force of the memory springing up from the grave took his breath away. 

Clark must have just brushed it off as shock, because he bent his head and kissed Lex again, like he was the oxygen. 

Then he was bumping into Clark, a push at his back. Someone was trying to open the bathroom door. Kent just laughed. "I guess we'd better get going. Ready?" 

"Ready," Lex replied, moving and opening the door, making sure that Kent followed him very closely all the way to the limo.


	3. Chapter 3

-The Other Side - 

 

A warm orange glow filled a tiny room, Clark could tell that much without even opening his eyes. He could feel the languid caress of every ray of sun coming through the window. It felt so good that he didn't even stop to consider that the light was coming from the wrong direction. 

 

With a sigh, he rolled over, and proceeded to fall straight to the floor. He thwacked onto the hardwood in a mass of flailing limbs and curses. Eyes snapping open, he scrambled upward. His bedroom didn't have hardwood flooring, the bed was much larger, things weren't adding up. As soon as he looked around though, whatever panic that threatened to consume him dissipated. 

 

He was home.

 

"Clark!" his mom shouted from downstairs. "Get down here, you're going to be late!"

 

Late? For what? 

 

Kent stumbled through his room, entirely too big to fit in the space. He dressed quickly and ignored the throbbing in the back of his head that felt like Kryptonite lodged into his skull. 

 

Still buttoning his flannel shirt, he practically ran downstairs.  

 

"Mom..." he finished the top button and looked up, the question he had in store dying on his parted lips. 

 

"Hey son, about time you got up. Do you realize that you skipped doing your morning chores?" 

 

Jonathan looked at his son as he spoke over the lip of a piping coffee mug. 

 

"Dad..." the word came out strangled and tear-filled. Clark's chest clenched and moisture gathered at his eyes. He wanted to say so many things that none of them managed to make it to his tongue. Instead, he rushed forward and pulled his dad out of his chair at the table and into a hug. 

 

"Dad...you're...you're okay..." Clark cried into his shoulder, breathing in the familiar scent of cologne that had been absent in his life for over a decade. The body squished under his hug was warm and familiar. He could hear Jonathan's heartbeat. He could feel his breath at his shoulder.

 

"Of course I'm okay Clark," Jonathan chuckled and patted Clark on the back a few times in a - please let me go - fashion. But Clark wouldn't relinquish his grip. He feared that the second he moved away, his dad would evaporate back to the land of the dead and he'd never see him again.

 

"What on earth has gotten into you son?" Jonathan dropped his arms and Clark finally had to let go. He backed up, tracks of tears running down his face. 

 

"What's wrong Clark?" Martha asked her son. But...she looked...different. The crows feet and smile borne wrinkles that usually graced her face were gone, as were the streaks of gray that belonged in her rich red hair. 

 

Clark still had a hand on Jonathan's shoulder - too make sure he was still real or to keep from passing out - he wasn't sure. 

 

"Nothing's wrong," he sniffled. "I just missed you so much," his voice tripped on the disbelief he harbored. Was he dreaming? Had he died or something? Whatever this was, he didn't want it to end. 

 

"Missed us?" Jonathan looked at him like he'd just fallen straight out of the looney bin. "Son, we had dinner together last night and did chores together." He turned his head towards a shrugging Martha, "aren't teenagers supposed to want more independence?" 

 

She smiled and raised her hands in a, 'who knows,' manner. 

 

Teenager? Clark's brows creased, and as his dad turned back towards him, so did his fathers. 

 

"Did you grow even more?" his dad asked, eyes raking over his son. Clark had another inch on him and his muscles seemed more defined. 

 

Clark's lips parted as his brain tried to make sense of the impossible. 

 

"You're going to be late you know," his mom said, taking a glass of orange juice and sitting at the table.

 

"Late for what?" 

 

"Very funny son," Jonathan finally escaped his grasp and resumed his place. "You have perfect attendance for this year, I wouldn't go wrecking that now."

 

Clark's face was still scrunched up in confusion, but he put the incredulous look away before his parents could catch it. He felt around in his pockets and looked around the living room and kitchen. 

 

"Your backpack is over there," his mom nodded to the back door."

 

"But where's my phone?" 

 

Jonathan and Martha exchanged looks. 

 

"Your phone? You mean the house phone? It's uh...where it always is."

 

"No, my cellphone."

 

Jonathan sighed and put his fork down. "We talked about this already son, you're not getting a cellphone until next year, your junior year. We're not going to argue about this again." 

 

Clark's eyes went wide, but his panic was cut off by a knock at the back door. 

 

"Who's that?" 

 

"It's Lex, of course. He probably got tired of waiting in the driveway and came to see what's taking you so long."

 

Another knock. 

 

"Well? Go! Get to school!" she stood and kissed Clark on the cheek, handing him his backpack. Clark's heart was in his throat and his stomach felt like it had been in a 4G's loop. Lex? Lex Luthor was here? 

 

He opened the back door and stared at a very young Lex. His jaw instantly set and he gulped, pushing down the usual disdain he felt for the other man. 

 

But Luthor was...was smiling...he had an easiness about him as he spoke. "What's the deal? You're going to be late," he grinned. Clark just dumbly nodded and stepped out onto the porch with his arch nemesis. 

 

Lex knocked into him as they walked towards the car. "Am I hallucinating, or are you taller? And more..." his words fell off as his eyes roamed over Clark. The attention made Clark's skin feel too tight and too hot. God...it was so obvious now...had Lex always looked at him like he was a midnight snack?

 

"What? You're not talking to me today?" Lex asked, opening the door to the Ferrari and climbing in. Clark plopped down in the passenger seat and looked over at Luthor. "What did I do wrong this time?" The question was serious but asked in jest, Lex's gray eyes glittering as he put the car into gear. 

 

"Nothing...I just...I..." Clark didn't know what to say. He hadn't been friends with Lex in forever. And whenever those familiar feelings of missing his former friend crept up on him, he would violently shove them down and go on 72 hour runs around the globe saving people to forget. 

 

"I just uh...don't know what to say." 

 

Lex was driving, but he snuck a weird glance over at Clark. "I usually can't get you to stop talking and now you have nothing to talk about?"

 

Silence. 

 

Superman...er...Clark...rung his large hands in his lap. 

 

"No tales about pining over the famous Lana Lang? No tales from the newest Crows football player? No mischief you're getting into with Pete? What about developments on Chloe's "Wall of Weird?" 

 

Memories came pouring in from the very back of Clark's mind and it made his stomach squirm. He couldn't get within 20 feet of Lana who had become powerful through Kryptonite. Pete moved away at the end of his sophomore year. He stopped playing football before college so that he wouldn't draw attention to himself. And Chloe was raising her son and keeping guard at the watch tower. Or at least...all those things would happen...

 

Had he gotten thrown through time? Who would have enough power to do such a thing? Why couldn't he remember?

 

"Did you hit your head or something?" Lex asked, genuine worry in his voice. 

 

"No...no," Clark tried a laugh. "But if I had I might ask if it was 2003..."

 

"All year long." 

 

Holy shit. He was in the past. But if future him was in the past, did that mean that 17 year old Clark was in the future? His face paled. 

 

Lex pulled the car over and cut the engine. They weren't at the school, though they were close. He had pulled in front of the Talon instead. 

 

"I'm actually really concerned about you," Lex spoke. Clark looked over at Luthor, into that familiar face that was so different. "I want to take you to a doctor."

 

"No, no, please don't," Clark pleaded. "I uh...I'm fine, physically."

 

"Then how are you not fine? Mentally?" 

 

Clark smiled, this time it reached his eyes. "I've just been really overwhelmed lately," he lied. "I think I need a day off school, but I wasn't going to ask my parents."

 

"Hmm...rebel Clark? That's a new one. And when were you going to tell me about playing hookie?"

 

"Right now."

 

"And what would you like to do on this school-free day," Lex turned towards him. He was slimmer, none of the muscle mass he had accumulated in prison put onto his frame yet. His face was plumper, his eyes devoid of the maniacle glitter they usually held. 

 

Apparently he had taken too much time appraising Lex's look, his body turned towards the other man as his eyes feasted on every difference. 

 

"You realize you're staring at me, don't you?" Lex asked. 

 

Luthor expected that in being caught staring, Clark would flush bright pink and stumble over some words as he tried desperately to backtrack. But none of that happened. Instead, Clark kept his gaze unwavering, his words steady and confident. 

 

"Am I?" Clark tilted his head.

 

The one thing that had always kept his...feelings...for Lex at bay was the fact that he was evil, the fact that he was unhinged and unscrupulous, perhaps mad. But this Lex was quite level headed, and being in such a small space with him, being bathed in the glow of this perfect past, made his inhibitions slip. He licked his bottom lip and watched Lex track the movement. 

 

Fuck, it was so evident that Lex had wanted him - desperately. How did he not see that as a teenager? 

 

"I think we should play hookie together. I'll take the day off and let the crap factory run itself." 

 

Shit, that was a dangerous idea. Lost in the past with Lex? What if Lex figured out that he wasn't...that he was a grown man? What if he did something to fuck up this timeline? How the hell could he get back to the future? He had no network here, no watchtower, he hadn't even met his hero friends yet in 2003. Getting back to his rightful time literally depended on the young Clark figuring shit out in the future. 

 

He was fucked.

 

If he had been this thick about Lex at 17...he was screwed. Luckily, his parents had kept him back a year before starting school, so sophomore Clark was 17. Not the 32 that he was in 2019...but better than being 15 or 14. 

 

Lex's hot hand on his knee snapped him out of his mental lap running session. His body turned into the touch before he could even consider what was happening. He was hard, and sure that Lex would notice. 

 

"What is going on with you Clark?" Lex looked drugged, every fiber of his body radiating - I want you, I need you - and it was enough to nearly break Clark. He was sitting next to a very un-evil Lex, a Lex that was a decade younger than him at 24. Fuck, their timing was never right was it?

 

"I just missed you Lex."

 

Luthor smiled, bringing his hand back to the ignition and starting the car. He tried not to let this admission make him so happy, but Lex's soul was singing. It had only been three days since he'd seen Clark and the farmboy missed him? He was so fucked.

 

"I would like to play hookie with you Lex, if that's alright." 

 

The billionaire kept his eyes on the road as he swung in the direction of the mansion. "It's definitely alright Clark. What should we do first? I was thinking a swim in the mansion pool followed by more food than either of us could eat in a lifetime. Maybe some video games and movies after that?" 

 

Clark rested his head against the headrest, turned to watch Lex's face. Something scarily close to happiness bloomed in his chest and the smile on his face was immovable. "Sounds good to me." 

 

Lex's grip on the steering wheel tightened. 

 

Clark wondered at all of this - marveled really. He had built up so many walls around all things 'Lex' - he had built up such repulsion and anger. But now, in this time, it melted off of him like a weight dissipating from his soul. He felt no animosity for this Lex, if anything he felt dangerously pliant. 

 

He would do anything for this Lex. Well, to be honest, he would do anything for his Lex in 2019 too. He'd saved his life countless times, watched over him as he slept, prevented a few car crashes, stopped a crazy LexCorp nut with a glock. He always rooted for Lex to succeed, although he'd never admit it. 

 

And 2019 Lex? He'd had countless chances to kill Superman and never did. He would come right to the edge, draw a kryptonite blade over the steel flesh of his cheek, but never plunged the knife into his heart. The worst he did was stab him in the abdomen. He may have taken a tumble into some water, but he was fine in the end. It was almost worth the look of crazed happiness that Lex wore as he plunged the blade in.

 

Not that he'd ever admit it to a single soul - but when he jerked off he sometimes thought about that. About Lex bringing him pain. He enjoyed it, being helpless beneath Lex's skilled hands. He'd even considered how much kryptonite he could embed into ropes and still remain conscious and hard.

 

"We're here you know, daydreamer," Lex was suddenly out of the car - the vehicle stopped in front of the goliath stone mansion. Clark cleared his throat and opened his door. Lex kept laughing at him and shaking his head. "Who knew Lana could take over your mind so completely," Luthor spoke as he got out his keys and walked to the front door.

 

God, why did Lex have to keep bringing her up? 

 

"Actually, I'm over her," Clark said, stunning Lex where he stood. The billionaire turned to him, door ajar, a look of stunned amazement on his face. 

 

This Lex was so expressive, so full of emotion, that Clark felt himself dying a little more, falling a little further. 

 

"Since when? How could such an earth-shattering change occur without me knowing?" They walked inside. Shoot, maybe Clark was screwing this up. For all he know he could vanish where he stood, be thrown back to the future, then 2003 Clark wouldn't know about these changes he was making.

 

It just pissed him off for some reason - having Lex think that all he could see was Lana. 

 

Lex shut the door. The pair stood inside, Lex looking up at him. "I swear you're taller." 

 

It was impossible for Lex to keep his gaze to himself, so much so that it was painful to pull himself away and walk further into the house. 

 

Clark just laughed behind him. Even his laughed seemed deeper. 

 

"Hey Lex, I uh...didn't bring a bathing suit."

 

"I have extras," Lex looked over his own shoulder at Clark and imagined what would happen if he suggested skinny dipping instead. 

 

Clark was trying to will away his erection as they entered the pool room and Lex handed him navy blue trunks. They looked small, no room to hide. Before he could protest though, Lex was gone, getting changed. Kent deliberately took his time changing so that Lex would be in the pool first. Clark wasn't sure he could handle seeing Luthor shirtless. The man was always buttoned up in expensive suits. He got rid of the turtle necks post 2005, but everything he wore kept his porcelain skin covered. It wasn't fair. 

 

"You coming out Clark?" 

 

Oh the irony. 

 

"Yeah, Lex." Clark stepped out of the changing room and saw Lex's head and shoulders bobbing up and down. 

 

He had wanted to hide from Lex, but there was no hiding here. 

 

Lex knew he wasn't imagining things... Clark was huge. His broad shoulders topping off his muscled frame. Every muscle seemed cut from stone, even Clark's face looked older. Maybe it had happened, maybe Lex had finally lost his mind. 

 

Clark broke his concentration as he splashed into the pool. Lex was spitting out water since his mouth was agape at the time of the cannonball.

 

"You splashed me on purpose," Lex said.

 

"So what if I did?" Clark challenged. "What are you gonna do about it?"

 

The two were stupidly close to one another in the water, Clark towering over Lex who kept sunken up to his chin....until Clark's hands reached out and pulled him to stand. 

 

"Why'd you do that?"

 

"I wanted to see more of you," Clark admitted, his eyes lapping against Lex's bare chest. Luthor was visibly shaken by the statement, but Clark could sense him throwing up walls. 

 

"I'll race you to the other end," Lex said, and took off. Clark smiled after him, let him get a ten second head start, then dipped below the water and zipped across the pool.


	4. Chapter 4

-2019-

"Wow Lex," Clark whispered, looking around Luthor's penthouse. 

"You like it?" 

"Well, of course, yeah, who wouldn't?" Kent replied, his eyes sweeping over the open layout and out the wall of windows that towered over the city. "Your place is gorgeous Lex." He walked through the kitchen and looked out at the sparkling city below.

"I suppose."

"You don't think your penthouse is stunning?" Clark turned from the windows to face Lex. The view ahead of him was just as mesmerizing as the one below. Luthor's gray eyes shone, the lights of the city twinkling across his features. Thinking a moment longer, young Clark came up with a surprising observation.

"I think I know what it's missing though."

"What?" Lex's eyes were locked onto Clark's lips. 

"It's missing some heart," Clark ventured. "Everything is clean and new and state-of-the-art, but I think it needs warmth." 

Lex's lips quirked upwards. 

Kent thought that Lex was acting so oddly, so much colder and detached than usual, and it only made him want to work harder to break that tough exterior.

"How do you think I could add some heart and warmth to my place Clark?" 

"Oh, I don't know...maybe by adding some softer things? Blankets and picture frames and things that are personal to you; I think that would give it some life." 

"Perhaps I should enlist you as my personal decorator," Luthor chuckled and so did the young man. 

"Me? You're always giving me grief about my lack of style." 

"Oh, I don't know," Lex gave Clark an appraising sweep of his eyes. "That's not a bad suit." 

"Well duh...you picked it out goofy," Clark knocked Lex on the shoulder in a playful way. Then Luthor looked around at his austere home. The reporter did have a point.

"I think you're right Clark, my place could use some light and happiness." 

"No kidding," he scoffed. 

"But I think I'm doing a good job of making it less melancholy, " Lex turned Clark towards him, reached up, and began undoing Clark's neck tie. "You're here aren't you?" 

"I'm...not décor...Lex," Clark struggled, aware of the older man's proximity as he undid the silk knot at his neck. 

"Of course not, but you are light...happiness." 

Clark had to remind himself to breathe. Lex's words settled into his soul with a purr. Tie discarded, Lex began unbuttoning the shirt next. 

"Can I ask you something Lex?" Clark sounded nervous. He could hardly believe any of this was happening.

"Of course," Lex stepped even closer, the buttons coming undone in his deft fingers. 

"I...I see now...the way you look at me, what it's meant this whole time...you've been flirting with me since we met, I think..." Clark posited, his words a jumble in his brain as Lex slid off both the jacket and his button down in one movement. His heart picked up speed.

"But what I don't understand," he continued, "is that you never really did anything...never made a move until now - until tonight."

Something definitely wasn't adding up to Lex...he most certainly had not been flirting with the intrepid reporter for the past several years. But rather than challenge this incorrect account of the past, he toed off his shoes and socks and slipped off his own jacket before reaching for Clark's belt. He wanted to keep the clothes coming off because he dreaded losing this. 

A charged silence thrummed between them before Lex whispered, "everything's about timing. Tonight is meant to be." 

This answer seemed to appease Clark, whose nervous look melted into a relaxed smile.

"I had thought about this before, you know, - you and me - but I could barely come to terms with having...those...kinds of thoughts about a man."

"Geeze Clark, it's the 21st century," Lex giggled, taking Clark's belt out of its loops and depositing it on the floor. 

"I know," Kent tried to breathe as Lex undid the button on his pants and slid the zipper down - the sound echoing in the large space. "How I feel about you is so...strong...that I think that it scared me at first."

Lex paused, Clark's words ringing too true. This did feel like a monumental moment, not just some lay after a drunken party. 

"When you told me we were the stuff of legends, I thought you were just being dramatic," the young man whispered, "but I think you were right. I think we're destined, Lex."

Luthor lunged forward, capturing Clark in an intense kiss. These feelings scared him too, more than he would ever acknowledge. His reaction to Kent was visceral, stemming from somewhere so deep in his being that he couldn't even put a finger on it. So why then had Clark spent the last...ever...staring him down at press conferences...being short with him in interviews...dragging him through the mud and mire in the Daily Planet? Did he exhibit hatred when he actually felt love because the notion of going down this road was so scary? 

Yet, the man whose tongue was currently in Lex's mouth hardly seemed like the emotionally stunted type. He was open and optimistic, putty in Lex's hands. None of it added up and alarm bells were going off every second he was with Clark, but rather than risk what he had found and question everything, he pushed his confusion away. 

Even Clark's face looked younger, and beneath the suit he wasn't nearly as muscled as Lex had remembered. He was lean and gorgeous, untamed power singing from under his golden skin, but not the intimidating man who had hulked over him at the last interview, arms crossed in front of his broad chest. 

"I can hear you thinking you know," a breathless Clark pulled away just enough for his hands to begin stripping Lex of his clothes. "Am I not good at this?" 

Fuck - there was that endearing insecurity again. 

"You're great at this Clark," he helped the young man get him naked, and stepped unabashedly out of his underwear. Kent's eyes were glued to his body, especially his long, hard cock. Clark was panting now and had a flush that started at his hairline and went straight down his chest. He was insanely hard, precum leaking through his boxers, the only clothing that remained on him. 

"I want you more than I've ever wanted anything," Lex admitted, shocked at his own honesty. "It's just hard for me to shut my brain off.

"I don't want you to shut it off," Clark added, "I just want it focused on this. On us."

"Oh, it is. Believe me."

Clark smiled and ripped away his own boxers. Before Lex could even get a good look at him, Clark was scooping him up in his arms and carrying him towards the bedroom. He placed Lex on the bed like he might break, then climbed on top of him. 

Kissing Lex was nothing at all like kissing Lana. There were no timid pecks here, just ravishing, soul searing nips and licks and moans. Clark had no idea that kissing could be like this. He could do this forever - keep tasting Lex and listening to the different noises he made. 

Lex finally broke away, needing to breathe, and had to put a hand around his base to keep from coming just from kissing. "Do you want to top or bottom?" he asked breathlessly. 

Clark squinted in confusion..."what do you mean?"

"Wow, you really never have been with a man before have you?" 

"Uh...no," he stumbled.

"Well it means...do you want to be inside of me, or have me inside of you." 

"Oh," Kent squeaked, his heart feeling like it would burst right out of his chest. 

"What...whatever you want Lex."

"No...you're going to tell me what you want, Clark," Lex kissed at his neck and hummed in approval. Kent tasted like sunshine and sunflowers and jumping into a cold pool on a blistering day. 

"I want to be inside of you," he finally gasped. "I just wish..."

"What?"

"That I could do something for you that no one has ever done before." 

Lex laughed, then reigned it in when he saw the hurt look on Clark's face. "I'm not laughing at you Clark, it's just that I've done everything."

"So there isn't anything you haven't allowed someone to do?" 

Lex ran his hands through Clark's hair. "Well...I've never let anyone touch my head really."

Clark's eyes lit up. "I want...can I?" 

"Yes," Lex answered quickly, but Clark moved even faster. In an instant, the farmboy had pulled him into a sitting position and gotten behind Lex, propping Luthor up who was now on his lap. They slotted together like puzzle pieces, Lex grinding his ass on Clark's dick and groaning. He felt a kiss at the nape of his neck that sent sparks through his body. Then a long swipe of a hot tongue up to the back of his skull. Lex bucked back into Clark, desperate for more. 

Kent kissed behind his ears, licked there, nipped each ear, kissed the top of his head, and nuzzled his own head against Lex's skull. Luthor was breaking, pleading for Clark to do more, to be inside of him or visa versa...to touch his cock...to do anything. 

Never. Never had he plead with a lover like this. Never had he had a lover, not since his teenage years, if ever. Kent wasn't just fucking him, he wasn't a quick fuck, he was making love to him. Alarm bells screamed but Lex's euphoria was at an all time high. 

As he kissed Lex's head, he reached around and grabbed his cock. He knew how to do this at least, and the angle was similar to doing it to himself. He smeared the precum around on the angry red head and alternated speeds. 

"Please, inside of me..." Lex pleaded.

"I don't just...go in though...do I?" 

"No, have to prep...stretch me open with lube and your fingers." 

Clark had plenty of lube, his cock had been weeping non stop. He thought it must be a Kryptonian thing. When he played with himself at home, sometimes he ended up with big wet spots on his sheets...and when he came...he came a lot. 

He used that precum to open Lex up with one finger. Luthor was trying to fuck himself on it in no time, asking for another finger. Clark rolled his sac in his left hand as he added a second finger, Lex crying out in pleasure tainted pain. Clark's hands were big. He added another finger. But even with three large fingers, Clark wasn't sure how he'd fit. He was really big, bigger than Lex and Lex was big. 

"Please, fuck me Clark..."

"I want to be face to face with you..."

As soon as the admission was uttered, Lex was maneuvering them. Luthor laid down on his back and pulled Kent over him. Clark hovered over him as Luthor practically bent himself in half. It had been a long time since he'd bottomed. He usually refused the request...the last him he bottomed he was in his twenties. Now he was approaching his forties, but he still looked twenty five. One of the perks of being a meteor freak he supposed. 

"Line yourself up," he panted. 

Clark was nervous. Suddenly aware that he could very well kill Lex with his strength, his face paled. He'd told Lex he had never slept with a man, and he hadn't, that was the truth. The whole truth though, was that he'd never slept with anyone. 

But having come this far, he couldn't just stop. 

"It'll be great, I promise," Lex soothed. "Take a deep breath."

Clark did as he told and rubbed his cock against Lex's hole, shuddering with pleasure.

"No...no condom?" he questioned, head nudging against Lex's hole. 

"I trust you Clark," Lex admitted. "And I'm clean." Lex never had unprotected sex and got tested every quarter regardless. His last test was a week ago. 

"I want you to feel me Clark, really feel me..."

Unable to wait any longer, Clark nodded pushed in slowly. Lex's sizzling heat engulfed his length and he groaned, stopping, in up to the hilt. It felt like developing a new super power - being filled with raw potential mixed with an edge of uncertainty. Like running around the entire planet in only a handful of minutes.

"God, move Clark...please..." Lex sobbed. Clark felt so good inside of him, filling him up, making his nerves buzz with pleasure. It felt more 'right' than anything he'd ever experienced before.

Clark did as he was told, pulling out and plunging in...trying to be delicate. But his superhuman version of delicate, would be a human's version of rough. Lex didn't seem to mind though, urging Clark on, moaning, yelling his name. Clark dug his fingers into Lex's sides hard enough to leave bruises. He kissed hickeys onto Lex's neck and snapped his hips in time with his older friend. 

"Need you Lex. Love you. Never let me go," he admitted into Lex's neck and Lex only rocked against him harder. Clark found that sweet spot inside of Luthor and hit it once, then again, and in the same amount of time it took him to run around the globe, Lex was coming onto his stomach, untouched. The sight pushed Clark over the edge as he plunged as deep as he could go and spilled inside of Lex with a moan. He came and came, cock pulsing, feeling his own come coat his shaft as he kept thrusting in and out. 

Lex thought his own heart might have stopped. Maybe he had already died and this was utopia. He felt himself pushed to the max, Clark's hot semen flooding him and it made his cock twitch and try to come back. 

What happened next though, made his blood run cold.

Lex heard a loud snap, and when he looked up, he saw his metal headboard made of steel, crunching in Clark's left hand. And when he looked at Clark, his eyes were closed tightly and a blinding light burned behind the lids. Little golden veins ran like rivers from Clark's closed eyes, as if the light was too powerful to keep shut in. Bits of metal were raining down from Kent's closed fist.

Finally, the light died down and he opened his eyes too look at Lex...Clark's eyes were yellowish...gold...turning green as Luthor watched. 

Some sick horror twisted in Lex's gut. He pushed at Clark's chest and scrambled away, disconnecting himself from Clark's cock and his hands. 

"You're Superman..." he leapt out of his own bed, semen dripping down his thighs. 

"Wh...what?" Clark looked at him dazed. He sat up in bed, confused as to why Lex left and wondering what he was saying.

Lex rushed away from Clark and stood backed against a dresser. 

"YOU'RE FUCKING SUPERMAN," he screamed. Anger and hurt and frustration battled to take over his features. "HOW COULD YOU? HOW COULD YOU NOT FUCKING TELL ME!" 

Clark tumbled out of bed, stood, and put his hands out in a pacifying manner, but Lex just skidded further away. 

"I...I don't know what you're talking about Lex! Who's Superman?" 

"REALLY? YOU'RE GOING TO PLAY FUCKING STUPID?" 

"Lex...I...I do have...powers. But I would never, ever. EVER. hurt you," tears began to well up behind his eyes, hot and stinging. "I've tried to tell you a thousand times, but I couldn't." Luthor said nothing and disgust was written all over his face. His heart was beating furiously in his chest and his vision swam with red. "I was going to though Lex...Please don't hate me just because I'm a freak," Clark was crying now, tears slipping down his porcelain face.  

"You're not a freak, you're A FUCKING ALIEN!" Lex hissed. 

The words sliced right through Clark and an ugly sob slipped through his lips.

"GET THE FUCK OUT!" Luthor was hyperventilating. He always had control over his own body, but not right now. Not as the room spun and the world shook and everything he thought he knew blew to shit. His hands and fingers tingled and he seriously worried about puking.

"Lex..." Clark was crying hard now, he took a step forward and then dropped to his knees. "I don't want to lose you, I can't lose you," he choked. "I would do anything for you Lex, I would die for you." 

Lex's mind was in a tailspin. He hated Superman, detested him, had tried to kill him. He wanted to hate this man on the floor, but he looked so young and he was sobbing and begging and choking on tears. Lex felt like a fool for being so blind and it wasn't a feeling he wanted to get used to. He focused on his breathing to try and stop the panic attack, but the harder he fought it, the more it was winning.

"I was going to tell you when I turned eighteen...just one more year Lex!" Clark was flying apart at the seams. Losing Lex right after he fully realized his feelings for him would destroy him completely. 

"Wh...what?" Lex's face rippled with confusion. Now nothing was making sense at all.

"How old are you?"

Clark wiped at his face and took heaving gulps of air in before he could answer. "I'm seventeen Lex, you just came to my party a month ago," he could barely get the words out. 

"What year do you think this is?" Lex walked towards Clark, eyes huge. 

Kent thought he was going to hit him. Well, he deserved it. 

"2003 Lex. Come on, you're scaring me!"

"This isn't 2003 Clark..."

"What...what are you talking about? Of course it is!" 

Lex disappeared out the door. Clark didn't entirely expect him to return, but he did...only, holding a newspaper. 

He tossed the newspaper down on the floor in front of the still sobbing Clark. It fluttered apart in a smattering of gray, but the front page was still on top.

Kent picked it up, eyes scanning it over and over again and then his eyes went wide. 

"It's 2019 Clark..." Lex said. "And that man on the front cover wearing that god awful primary colored suit...that's you." 

The newspaper read in bold letters: "Superman Neglects to Save Thousands as Bomb Explodes on Train"

Green eyes, glassy with hot tears, stared up at Lex. "I don't...understand..." he shook his head.

A deep throbbing began in Clark's head and was swallowing up his vision. He hissed and grabbed at his head with his free hand. "Who...who's Superman?" 

"You are," he heard Lex say just as he felt himself falling. Falling toward the black abyss where the room no longer spun and his head no longer hurt...the image of a horrified Lex lived there though...burned into his memory for eternity like a hot brand. 

He gave into the void and fell unconscious on Lex's bedroom floor. 


	5. Chapter 5

-2003-

Of course Clark won the race, it was no contest. He sliced through the water better than any fish and emerged on the other end in just enough time that it wouldn't seem suspicious. Lex wasn't far behind, but he had a look of pleased shock on his face. 

"Okay, this just isn't fair." 

Clark laughed, "what isn't?" 

"You're the football hopeful, you're not supposed to be the lithe swimmer too. Is there any sport you're not good at?" 

Clark just smiled and lowered his head, saying nothing.

"Ah..the ever modest Clark Kent," Lex grinned. "You have got to convince your dad to let you play football, and if that doesn't work - maybe the swim team." 

"Nah," Clark ran a hand through his hair. "I prefer being the newspaper nerd."

Lex made an 'as if,' face and splashed Clark. "You have way too much athletic talent to waste it. Plus, you can't tell me that journalism camp is your idea of a fun summer." 

"Hey, don't splash me," Clark splashed him back. 

They laughed and continued splashing one another until Lex decided to disappear under the water. He swam off to another corner of the pool, and Clark followed. 

Lex rested against the edge, elbows propped up on the tile lip. "I don't get you Clark."

Kent's heart stuttered.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...you could kill at any sport. You could have any girl you wanted. Hell, if you so much as walked onto campus with your shirt off, you'd have all of Smallville drooling after you. But you hide in books and avoid sports and let Whitney push you around and bully you."

Clark was treading water and he swam closer to Lex, who suddenly looked very cornered. 

"Maybe I don't want to have any girl," Clark spoke onto the water, watching it ripple through Lex. 

"You don't know what you're talking about," Lex shook his head. He grinned, but it was a nervous smile. "You're young and confused and..."

"And I can't like anyone unless they're a girl?" 

"Well no but..."

"Just as long as I don't want you, is it that?" Clark floated closer still. Lex gulped. How the hell had he turned into the fish out of water? And Clark had morphed into the self assured one asking all of the tough questions? What was going on? Was it a full moon? 

"You can like whoever you want Clark... I...I think we've been spending too much time together," Lex went to move to the left but Clark blocked him.

"Don't run away, Lex. I'm sorry," Clark shook his head, a dejected look on his face. "I never would have said anything if I didn't think you returned the feeling. And I know that you do...return the feeling..."

Lex tried to shake his head, deny it. He had thought of himself as stoic and hard to read, but Clark apparently had the ability to read right through him. He had thought the younger man to be totally clueless when it came to matters of the heart... What happened to that innocent naiveté? 

"I don't recall ever saying anything of the sort."

Clark grinned a shark grin that sent a pleasant shiver down Lex's spine and straight to his cock. 

"You say plenty with your silence Lex..." he drew out the "x" until it sounded obscene and Luthor grew so hard it hurt. "Unless I'm wrong...but I'm not." 

Lex didn't want to give the appearance that he was shrinking away from the conversation, so he left the "cornered" position clinging to the pool wall and took a step forward until he was chest to chest with Clark... who's chest was quite impressive...

"You're too young Clark. And I break everything I touch."

"Sounds like you have plenty of excuses. Sounds like you're scared of finding something real. And as for me...well, it's a good thing that I'm unbreakable Lex," Clark smiled one of his thousand-watt smiles and Lex couldn't even be mad at him. He couldn't even combat his words because they were all true. He was mad and terrified and aroused and his brain was quickly short circuiting. 

Clark leaned forward and whispered onto the wet flesh of Lex's exposed neck. "I see the way you look at me Lex. I know what it means."

"I've been trying to be good Clark..." Lex admitted. 

"You have?" Clark pulled back just enough to bring his face to his friend's. "Because I think you've been teasing me. Wrapping your lips around those water bottles, wearing those tight slacks and bending over the pool table, caressing those cue sticks..."

Lex wondered briefly if he'd died and gone to heaven, or maybe hell. It was easy to resist Clark when he was naive and oblivious, and he could convince himself that the farm boy was straight. But this was a different story entirely. Clark had caught on to the flirting he just couldn't suppress. He had caught the cues Lex had always thought he'd missed. He was calling Lex on it in a move so bold that Luthor never even saw it coming. Lex was so caught off guard, and so fucking hard, staring at a mostly naked - wet- Clark Kent who, absolutely had to have, grown even more muscled and tall over the past three days.

"Yo--you're underage," Lex tried weakly, at the end of his excuses.

"I was found in a field Lex, at who knows how old. Do I look seventeen to you?" He rose suddenly, proving his height over Lex and giving him a nice view of water weaving it's way through his six pack. 

"Your dad has a shotgun. He'll kill me," Lex swayed towards Clark, eyes half hooded, lust dripping from his gaze. 

"I'll protect you," Clark promised, his hands finding Lex's thin hips. Alarm bells blared in his head but he ignored them. Was this moral? Was he tricking Lex? He wasn't actually seventeen, but much older than the Lex he had set his sights on. If he told Lex everything right now - the other man would think he was insane. Not to mention, it would blow his -er- seventeen-year-old's Clark's secret. 

He could just picture Batman screaming at him for altering the timeline - and he would have a point. But...but here was Lex...young and bright and brilliant. He was miles of alabaster skin dipped in salt water. He was smiles and coy remarks and slight glances. He was Clark's youth, Clark's daydream, Clark's wet dream, all rolled into one. Resisting this would be so impossible, and if Clark had resisted, well, he would regret it for the rest of his life. 

But was he taking advantage of Lex?

A hand was suddenly in his hair, melting away his thoughts and pulling him in for a kiss. 

Lex expected a clumsy and fumbled kiss, but Clark was proving an expert in more ways than one. Kent wasn't just experienced, he was taking over the kiss. He was assertive... hands grabbing Lex's ass and pulling him against his erection, teeth nipping at his lips, tongue pushing forward and exploring. He tasted like coffee and caramel and salt and Lex let out a groan that shook him to his core. 

The kiss lasted so long that Lex eventually had to break it off just to breathe, but Clark wasn't even out of breath, just bright eyed and red lipped and ready for more. 

"I was going to ask you if you're a virgin, but I have a feeling that the answer is 'no.'"

Clark's lips parted, then closed. Seventeen-year-old Clark would have said yes, but he wasn't that Clark and he couldn't feign in-experience. Once that bell was rung, it couldn't be un-rung, and Lex could already tell...

"I'm...not a virgin..."

Lex tried very hard not to let his feelings reach his expression, but his face fell regardless. 

Clark couldn't even say that he was a virgin when it came to men... he'd slept with Bruce - a lot. 

"You...didn't even tell me when it happened..." Lex whispered, more to himself than anyone. 

Clark hung his head and water droplets fell from the curls at his forehead. 

"I'm sorry Lex. I'm not a virgin. Neither are you. But..." he raised a hand and cupped Luthor's face. He shook his head, searching for the right words, his gaze intensely focused. "Nothing compares to this. To you. I was scared. I fell for you that day under the bridge, breathing you back to life. I felt so much for you so fast that it scared me and...and I handled everything all wrong," tears welled in his eyes. "Please forgive me," he said brokenly, tears streaming down his already wet face. 

Lex moved forward, bringing Clark in for another kiss, a different, more tender kiss. "You have nothing to apologize for," he said after pulling apart. "I'm stingy. I want you all to myself, but I was too much of a coward, too scared. You're the only friend I've ever had and I would never do anything to risk that, including tell you how I feel."

Clark wanted to say, "you'll never lose me," but he knew the words were false and that broke his heart. He should walk away - get out of the pool, go back home, figure out how to get back to 2019. But his body sang for Lex's touch and rang out at the sound of Lex's voice. His entire being purred when Lex touched him and he literally ached for more. He could actually be destroying the future with his actions right now, but the pull towards Lex was unlike anything he'd ever felt. It was as if it were an imperative to keep going, keep getting closer to Lex. It was like his need for the sunshine. It was like his need to save lives. It was strong and palpable and pulling him to reach out and draw Lex close again.

He kissed Lex's neck and slid his hands inside of Lex's trunks to grasp his ass. He ground his cock against Lex's and whined at how good it felt. 

"I need you Lex." 

"You have me Clark."


	6. Chapter 6

-2019-

Clark groaned and brought a hand up to his throbbing head. He rolled over on his side and buried his face in the soft pillow with a sigh. 'What a weird dream,' he thought, temples pulsing. Taking a deep breath, he noticed that the pillow smelled...nice; not like his pillow at all. Shifting in the sheets, he noticed that they were considerably softer. 'Had mom gotten new sheets?' he wondered. And oddest of all, the matress itself seemed like a bed of clouds. With too many oddities piling up, he peeled his eyelids open.

"Good, you're awake," a familiar voice said.

Startled, Clark twisted in bed and searched for the owner of that voice. 

'Shit, it hadn't been a dream,' his brain struggled to catch up. 'No, this can't be happening. This can't be real. It's 2019? I had sex with Lex? Oh. OH. I had sex with Lex...'

"Earth to Superman," Lex tilted his head. He was neatly settled in a sitting chair, facing the bed. Clark wondered how long he'd been sitting there, watching him sleep. "Are you alright?" 

"Alright?" Clark squeaked, sitting up in bed. "How could I be alright?" He had sat up too quickly and spoken too loudly, it made his head scream in pain, so he brought a hand up to it and hissed. 

"I thought about calling my personal doctor - but I don't think it can be risked considering the fact that you're Superman." 

"Would you stop?" 

"Stop what?" 

"Calling me that," Clark said, his voice helpless. Lex was struck by just how young Clark seemed and a sickness roiled through his stomach. This was just a...a teenager? 

"Are you sure of your age?" he asked suddenly.

Clark's expression twisted in confusion. "What?" 

"Are you sure that you're only a teenager? You don't look it."

Silence.

"I'm sorry," Lex leaned forward, putting his face in his hands. "I just can't fucking believe that I...I had sex...with a...a...seventeen year old," his face looked dangerously pale. 

"Uh - er - if it makes you feel better...I was found in a field as a toddler. I think my age was just...guesstimated...so I might be eighteen or nineteen...who knows?"

Lex slowly slid his hands down his cheeks, exposing his red eyelids. Clark's attempt to assuage his guilt wasn't working. 

"I could fucking go to jail," Lex muttered beneath his breath. 

"Oh...god...I'm so sorry Lex...I..."

"How old did you think I was?" Lex cut him off. 

"I...uh...thought it was my regular life, in 2003 and that you were 23. So if it's 2019, then you're..."

"Thirty-nine," Lex finished. 

Clark couldn't help the moan that left his lips. He had always been turned on by the fact that Lex was older than him. His hand twisted in the silk sheet as he tried to tamp down his desire. It was embarrassing; the sheets didn't conceal much. 

Lex looked up from his hunched over position on the chair with a glitter in his eyes. "Does that turn you on, Clark?" 

"Uhm..." he swallowed. 

Lex stood and sauntered towards the young man in the bed. "You certainly don't seem underage to me," he reached out a hand and placed it under Clark's chin, tilting it upwards. "But even at seventeen...you should have known better than to sleep with a 23 year old."

Clark gulped guiltily. "I - wasn't thinking of age." 

"What were you thinking of?" 

"That I...I care so much about you Lex...my feelings for you are s-so strong."

Something hard in Lex's eyes melted away and heat bloomed in his chest. He swallowed, terrified. "I don't know how that's possible since I only know you as Superman. Well, and as Clark Kent, the Daily Planet Reporter." 

"I work for the Daily Planet?" Clark's eyes lit up. 

"Don't get too excited. You've just quit." 

"Oh."

Lex dropped his hand. Clark looked confused. 

"There's no way that you don't remember our time together in Smallville. No way. Is this a parallel universe or something?" 

"No, I don't think so."

"Then why don't you remember?" Clark looked striken and Lex had the sudden urge to kiss the pout off his face. Fuck, Kent was dangerous.

"I don't know," Lex paced. "That's a mystery for another time. For now, I think we should figure out how you got to 2019, and how to get you back." 

Clark's face fell, his eyes downcast, staring at the purple silk sheets. 

"What's wrong?" 

There was a long beat of silence hanging between them. 

"I thought it was odd...you flirting with me so openly," Clark muttered. "I should have known something was off. The Lex in my time would never..." he exhaled deeply. "I can't imagine returning to a reality where I don't get to have this with you." 

"Oh, I don't know...I'd bet your Lex would be more than amenable...when you're legal of course." 

"No...I doubt it." 

"Why would you say that?" Lex's hands were on his hips. He looked beautiful, illuminated by the lamp light. 

Clark looked up at Luthor with heartbreak in his eyes. "Because my secrets are driving a wedge between our friendship."

Luthor gritted his jaw. For a moment he had forgotten that he was talking to Superman - the being he hated most.

"I mean, look how you reacted to finding out..." Clark drew in upon himself, dragging his knees up and encircling them with his arms. "The disgust on your face. The hatred." 

"Superman and I don't exactly... get along."

Kent's eyes were so green and innocent. "That's what I'm afraid of Lex. I'm afraid that one day, when you've lost interest in me or will want to hurt me...if you know my secrets...you'll just...kill me." The last two words were spoken softly, but landed harder than a boulder in the quiet space. 

A rush of intense guilt flooded Lex and he discovered that he hated the feeling. He had a soft spot for Clark Kent that clashed violently with the hatred he harbored for Superman. 

Kent's head rested on his arms and he sighed. "Don't want to lose you," he said so softly, Lex almost didn't hear. A great lump formed in Lex's throat. 

"This is all too much to handle at once," he said logically. "You need to get some rest and so do I." Kent looked up at him with weary eyes. "I'll sleep in the guest room." 

"No," Clark said too suddenly and too loudly. "Sleep here...please..."


End file.
